Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration

The Big Ten-Ivy League Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration is a multi-institutional research effort whose mission is to better understand the causes and effects of sport-related concussion and head injuries.

The Big Ten-Ivy League Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration draws on the intersection of great medicine, great athletics, and great academics to bring together world-class coaches, athletic trainers, scientists, and team physicians to study the effects of traumatic brain injury in sports. Researchers and athletic clinicians within the Big Ten, the Big Ten Academic Alliance, and the Ivy League have a unique opportunity to be at the forefront of TBI/sports concussion research to better inform biomedical and behavioral science, enhance clinical practice, and benefit the nation’s citizens and soldiers through innovative research that enhances the prevention, detection, and treatment of TBI.

In June 2012, the Big Ten, the Big Ten Academic Alliance and the Ivy League joined forces in an effort to better assess these injuries from a physical and behavioral standpoint, and to improve athlete education and welfare. Through a commitment to broad-based programming for over 18,000 combined student athletes, these two prestigious academic and athletic entities have a unique opportunity to be national leaders at the forefront of significant change. This 22-institutional membership collaborative effort will provide a broad population sample from which to obtain meaningful data on the incidence of head injuries in young adults, and will allow for the potential of longitudinal examinations into the health impact of head injuries as student-athletes transition into professional careers both on and off the field. Through a shared vision of student-athlete well-being, this effort reinforces and serves as a positive representation of the position of intercollegiate athletics within the higher education model.

The below are contacts at each campus who have been identified as a point of contact for TBI research/projects on their campus. They are knowledgeable of TBI student-athlete research being conducted at their campus and are willing to connect with those outside of their institution who may have interest in collaborating on TBI projects. The campus contacts also collaborate with Martha Cooper, TBI Project Coordinator, in identifying TBI partnerships for the campus as well as the broader TBI membership.

Ivy League-Big Ten
Epidemiology of Concussion Study

Started in the Ivy League in 2013, this is a multi-site, prospective, observational study to characterize the epidemiology of concussions among student athletes in the Ivy League and Big Ten Conference. Learn More